Chapter 72

Anila’s POV

Escaping the school was exhilarating and by the time we reached the forest, I had tumbled over laughing. I’m not sure what I found so funny, but I couldn’t help myself. My adrenaline was rushing, and I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

Zach was also laughing as he looked over his shoulder to make sure we weren’t being followed. He put his hand on my lower back, and I felt my entire body relaxing against his as I looked up at him. My cheeks were flushed, and I couldn’t seem to get that stupid grin off my face.

I hated that I was feeling this strongly toward Zach though and despite my wolf insisting that he was my mate, I found myself resisting the pull. But Zach’s warm and very unfamiliar smile seemed to have melted the barrier I wrapped my heart in, and I found myself returning the smile.

“What now?” I asked, my voice coming out way breathier than I meant it to.

“Now, you should put the dragon back where you found it,” he told me, his gaze softening. “I know it’s hard. But the dragon’s mother is probably hunting for her as we speak, and you don’t want to be caught with her.”

My heart squeezed in my chest; I didn’t want to let this little thing go.

“What if she’s abandoned?” I asked, my voice coming out as barely a whisper.

“Dragons don’t abandon their young,” he explained.

“How do you know?” I asked.

“Because that’s not how it works.”

“Then explain to me how it works,” I said, turning to face him. “Please…”

He stared at me for a moment, studying my face with his eyes and I felt a blush creeping along my nose and cheeks. I’m not sure why he had this effect on me, but I suddenly felt a little nervous around him, a feeling I had yet to experience with him.

His eyes shifted to my lips, and I bit my lower lip out of instinct. His eyes darkened for a moment as he took me in and this they shifted back to my eyes.

“Take me to the spot you found her in, and I’ll explain it,” he said, his voice low and breathy. I felt his breath hitting my features and it took everything I had not to lean in and close the gap between us.

I managed to nod and then I turned away, despite not wanting to. I weaved through the many trees in the forest until I stopped at a large oak tree with a hole in the trunk. I placed the little dragon back into the hole and I was pleased to see that she stopped shaking. She was making herself comfortable in the hole and rummaging for leaves and bugs for herself.

My heart squeezed; I didn’t want to leave her alone here to find for herself. She was only a little thing.

I heard the ruffling of some trees, and I was startled, whipping around to see the intruder. But I saw nobody there. With a racing heart, I turned my attention back to Zach who was studying me.

“Did you hear that?” I asked.

He took looked around and I sensed he felt a bit uneasy as he wrapped an arm through mine.

“We shouldn’t stay here,” he muttered, pulling me along with him. I stopped him though, ripping my arm away from him, and went back toward the little dragon.

“I need to say goodbyes,” I told him. Zach didn’t stop me as I went back toward the little dragon who was staring up at me with her big purple eyes.

“Hey, little thing,” I whispered, touching her scaly back and smiling at the sensation. “I’m sorry, but you belong here, not with me in the dorm. I really tried to take care of you and I’m so sorry that it didn’t work out. But your mommy will be back for you, and you’ll be safe again.”

Even as I said those words, I felt nervous about them being true. If a mommy dragon appeared in this forest, would that raise hell around campus? Even more so than the baby dragon? I felt sick just thinking about it but I swallowed it down and forced a smile at the little thing.

“We will see each other again soon,” I promised it, unsure if that was a promise I’d be able to keep.

It croaked and it made me smile even bigger.

“Please don’t go back toward the school. It’s too dangerous.”

With a puff of fire, she curled up in her little nest and fell asleep. I sighed, blinking away the tears in my eyes as I turned back to Zach who was watching me with concern on his face.

“You okay?” He asked.

I nodded and walked past him.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” I murmured. “So, tell me what you know about dragons.”

“Let’s go a little further into the woods,” Zach said, grabbing a hold of my arm and pulling me along with him. I wasn’t sure where we were going, but I felt oddly safe and relaxed being escorted by Zach.

The thought of Xaden popped into my head and my stomach immediately clenched; he was probably incredibly worried about me. I thought about texting him to tell him I was fine, but then I thought against it. He most likely ran into Penny at some point, and she most likely told him that I left with Zach.

He was going to be upset about this and I shuddered at the thought. But it’s not like we are redoing anything, we were just talking. We needed to talk; this was a good thing. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.

We finally reached an area with some of the largest trees I had ever seen, and Zach leaned against one of them, folding his arms across his chest.

“Okay, nobody should hear us from here. What do you want to know?”

“Anything you can tell me about dragons,” I answered. “How do you know they don’t abandon their young?”

“It’s not in their nature,” Zach explained. “They are nurturing creatures; you mess with their babies; you mess with them. You’re lucky the mother didn’t catch you with her baby or hell would have broken loose.”

I shuddered at the thought of putting people in danger.

“I guess I wasn’t really thinking about it,” I admitted.

He nodded thoughtfully.

“Dragon breeding has become illegal since the last Alpha King wrote a petition,” Zach continued to explain. “Dragons in general aren’t really allowed on land, but that has never stopped the dragon king. It’s not like anyone can really stop a dragon, that’s what makes them so scary.”

I raised my brows in confusion.

“They aren’t allowed on land?” I asked, unsure if I heard him correctly.

But he nodded and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Yeah, the dragon master made a new home for them under the ground,” Zach explained.

My mouth fell open in shock.

“They live under the ground?” I gasped.

“Yes,” he answered. “But it’s difficult for eggs to hatch under the earth, so the eggs are hidden around, mainly in trees like the one you found. Once it hatches, typically either the dragon king or the mother dragon will come and retrieve it. Then they go back under the earth to live out their days.”

“I see,” I whispered. “And they are okay under the ground?” I asked, feeling a wave of unease in my belly.

“I’m not really sure. Only the dragon king and the dragon masters know what it’s like under the earth. But I can’t imagine it’s pleasant.”

I shuddered at the very thought. I didn’t like the idea of them under the ground like that. They must have been so uncomfortable. And I can’t imagine dragons are small.

“It’s for the best,” Zach added, bringing me out of my thoughts. “The last dragon king nearly destroyed the entire world.”

“But that’s not this dragon king,” I said defiantly. “Things could be different now.”

“They could be, yes. But that’s not a chance anyone is willing to take. A lot of lives were lost during that war. A lot of innocent lives, Anila. I know your little dragon friend seems cute, but once she gets older, she’s going to be dangerous.”

I wrapped my arms around my body, trying to hold myself together. He sighed and to my surprise, he pushed off the tree he was leaning against and closed the gap between us in one stride. He wrapped his arms around me and crushed me to his body.

I felt myself relaxing almost immediately. I lay limp against him, feeling all sorts of defeated all of a sudden.

“I don’t mean to worry you, it’s just dangerous,” he said, his tone softening.

I nodded against his chest, suddenly wanting to bury my face in him. Being wrapped in his arms was intoxicating; I could no longer think about anything else; I couldn’t think straight. All I could think about and all I could smell was Zachary Gresham and I hated myself for that.

Then Xaden popped into my head, and I knew he wouldn’t approve of me spending time with his brother. I pushed off Zach and peeked up at him.

“I should get back to campus,” I said, wiping the tears off my face, tears I hadn’t known fell from my eyes. “But do you think we could travel back and check on her one last time? I’m still worried.”

He smiled and then he nodded.

“Sure,” he conceded.

As we walked back to the location where we left the baby dragon, I couldn't help but feel watched. I felt this familiar warmth spread up my spine, causing the hairs on my neck to stand tall. I wrapped my arms around my body like I was trying to warm myself from the strange sensation.

We finally reached the hole in the tree, and I peeked inside, expecting to see the baby dragon still snuggled inside, sleeping.

But when I didn’t see her, my mouth fell open and my heart began to race.

“What is it?” Zach asked, stepping beside me.

“She’s gone.”